Wednesday, May 27, 2015

I didn't have passes to attend the Los Angeles premiere for the new Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson film, San Andreas, but I went to the Hollywood and Highland area to try and get some decent pictures. I didn't get as many good photos as I would have liked (most were a bit blurry) due to how fast the actors were moving and the pushing and shoving among those in the fan area.

I arrived to the area around 5:30 and arrivals would start a little after 6pm, so I was later than I would have liked, but I was still able to get a great spot almost directly across from where the stars would be exiting their vehicles.

The best part of the event was The Rock arriving aboard an LAFD truck and a LAFD helicopter hovering above (quite low so dust and debris blew around a bit), which you can see in these photos.

Fire truck waiting for the road to be cleared

LAFD helicopter hovering overhead

Here are the only halfway decent pictures I was able to take of Colton Haynes (that boy moves too fast!).

Colton Haynes getting ready to cross the street to the fan area

Colton Haynes

Alexandra Daddario

The Rock himself!

The Rock probably recording a video for his Instagram

The Rock being interviewed by Entertainment Tonight.

I was really waiting for Ioan Gruffudd and Alice Evans to arrive and was afraid I had missed them. They arrived last, after Dwayne Johnson, and most of the photos I took were blurry, but I did get a really good close-up photo of Ioan. Alice didn't come over to where I was standing.

Alice Evans and Ioan Gruffudd crossing the street towards the fan area

Ioan Gruffudd

Alice Evans

I took a really cute picture of Ioan going to Alice to go back to the black carpet together and holding hands, but it was really too blurry.

I used to only go to fan areas of premieres if I was really interested in one or more of the stars, but I realized that I had forgotten that it's a big deal for so many people since they don't have movie premieres anywhere near where they live. I guess living in Los Angeles had made me jaded. I've decided to start covering more premieres (when I'm not attending them) for those fans who would love to be there but are unable to.

I'll be seeing San Andreas tonight at another advance screening, so we'll see how it is. I'm expecting lots of action and an unplausible story, and I'm okay with that.

Monday, May 11, 2015

This past Saturday, I attended Doctor Who-Dunnit Mystery Theater Lunch aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. This was the premiere event held by Nerder Mysteries. Your ticket included a catered buffet lunch, complimentary parking, and there was time to wander around the Queen Mary (which I highly recommend). All this was in addition to the mystery "dinner" theater. Saturday's event was Doctor Who themed and costumes were highly encouraged as there was also a costume contest (which will be voted on online at a later date...stay tuned for those details!)

The event was in the Windsor Salon

Tickets sold out about 2 weeks prior to the event and was limited to about 150 people. There was a raffle and silent auction with all proceeds benefitting Lumos. I really liked the way Nerder Mysteries handled the payments for the auction and raffle as they had a computer for you to donate directly to Lumos at wearelumos.org or you could also donate via your phone and show them the receipt to receive your raffle tickets. I know this simplifies their not having to handle large sums of money, but it benefits those who are donating since they were able to be entered in the promotion Lumos was running as well as get the tax deduction for themselves.

Jammie Dodger!

Upon check-in, we received a packet with information of the characters in the play. We had tickets with which we could make a first and second guess (at separate times during the performance) which were also included in the file.

The tables had cute TARDIS containers holding the table numbers. There were also cookies and jelly babies on the tables for us to snack on.

There was an impromptu sing-along to 500 Miles by The Proclaimers. Hopefully, my blurry video will play below.

There was a large TARDIS which the official photographer would take your photo in front of which was also how you entered the costume contest. There was a slightly smaller TARDIS next to the bar which was provided by Come Along Cosplay (aka: NerdyEvents.com) which is available for hire for your own parties!! They also have a K-9 which took part in the show, and I didn't get any photos of it, unfortunately.

Sarah Jane & 11

This lady guessed correctly even halfway through the performance!

The show officially started after we were able to get lunch from the buffet. Lunch consisted of Wedge salad, potato salad, coleslaw, hamburgers (and fixings), Bratwurst, barbeque chicken breast, and rolls. There was Dutch style apple pie, chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream for dessert. There was a bar for alcohol, but as I wasn't drinking I'm not sure of their offerings nor whether or not it was "open" or "no-host" style. There was iced tea and lemonade available in addition to the water and coffee which was served at the tables.

There were quite a few hiccups in the production, but I have to say for a first event (and quite a large event at that), it was quite a lot of fun. Kudos to Bernie Bergman of Nerds Like Us for providing fun ad-libbing when they ran into trouble.

Here is a short video of the performance which includes K-9 though you can't see him.

After the luncheon, the group I was with walked around the Queen Mary. I hadn't been on the Queen Mary since I was about 12 years old so I really enjoyed this part of the day. It was also a typically beautiful day (the days leading up to Saturday were cloudy and rainy), so it was serendipitous to be aboard on Saturday.

The bridge of the Queen Mary:

View from starboard

Starboard lifeboats

Looks like a wedding was happening later

One of the starboard lifeboats

Red and Blue Ensigns

One of the port side lifeboats

One of the many phone boxes we saw.

The Spruce Goose used to be here and I don't know what's in there now.

Engine Room

Gas mask Circa 1930s??

First Class dining

I can't wait for the next event which I'm hearing is of a wizarding nature and will happen this fall!

Be sure to follow Nerder Mysteries on Facebook and Twitter for updates and information.

Friday, May 8, 2015

In addition to the Daenerys bracelets, I knew I had to make some for other Houses from Game of Thrones. I'm still working on most of them, but I did make a few for the House of Baratheon.

These will also be given away at this year's San Diego Comic Con in July. I'm open to other ideas of what you would like seen represented, so let me know in the comments below, on Facebook, Twitter (@WeirdlifeofV), or Tumblr (@WeirdlifeofV).

Be sure to check out my other bracelet posts to see what Your Friend Elle and I will be giving away!TTFN,